Update: Schalke 04 release statement on possible sale of LEC spot

As the COVID pandemic has hit most of the football clubs hard financially, Schalke 04 released a statement about the possible sale of their LEC spot.

In a reddit AMA, the football club talked a little more in-depth about the issue, saying they don’t want to sell but may be forced to if the situation gets worse. “We’re currently in the process of evaluating different options that the club can take depending on the circumstances it’ll find itself in by the end of the Bundesliga season. This includes, but is not limited to, selling the LEC slot to an interested buyer. However, no decision has been made as of right now and the club getting relegated doesn’t necessarily force us to sell the slot.”

The transparency of the statement was appreciated by a lot of the LEC fans, who would be sad to see one of the founding members of the league go. There’s currently no more information available on the issue and it’ll be up to Schalke 04 to decide what to do at the end of the Bundesliga season.

In the AMA Schalke 04 also touched on the situation with FORG1VEN, explaining what exactly happened. “He was subbed out and then made the call to leave for Greece. We originally wanted to see what we could do for Summer (since Spring was already pretty doomed at that point), but after his statement, he wasn’t welcomed at Schalke no more. We still had to pay his salary though, as German unions are pretty protective in this regard.”

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Previous article (24/02/21)
As the financial situation for the Schalke 04 football team grows more dire, it might have consequences for the LEC side of the coin as well.

Things aren’t looking so good for Schalke 04 in the Bundesliga, the German football competition, as they currently sit in last place. It’s been no secret that the team has also been struggling financially, in part due to their performance but also due to their insanely high debt they acquired over the years. As their formed president also left last year, things aren’t exactly looking up for the team.

Schalke 04 reportedly might turn to selling their LEC spot to acquire more funds and to release financial pressure, with the esports industry still mostly turning out a net loss. Allegedly a possible sale of the spot has already been discussed internally which would have some repercussions on the League of Legends landscape, as Schalke 04 was one of the first teams in the LEC and has provided us with some wonderful moments such as their recent ‘miracle run’.

Also read: The 5 best top laners to climb in soloqueue

If Schalke 04 decides to opt out and sell their spot, it’s up to Riot Games to find a new team to join the LEC franchise. It’s currently unclear which teams would be interested in picking up the spot, as it of course could be quite costly, ranging somewhere from 15 to 20 million euro. 

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Image Credit: Riot Games
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